One Man’s Techno Trash….

One Man’s Techno Trash….

I recently noticed my dishwasher leaking. When our landlord came to inspect, he determined that the relic (an original wood-paneled 1964 Hobart ‘Inspiron’) had bitten the dust at long last. While discussing replacement options, he shared a little handyman insight, explaining how appliance manufacturers today (unlike in 1964) intentionally half-ass production to ensure that the racks rust out within a fairly predictable 5-year timeframe. Further, they price the replacement parts at roughly half the cost of a whole new machine, to encourage full replacement as opposed to repair.

Though I don’t believe all of what he said (this is my sketchy landlord we’re talking about after all), I must agree that techno-gadgety-appliance-things don’t hold up like they used to and, in certain instances, seem to suspiciously self-destruct right when a newer model launches, phones in particular. In addition to the environmental damage this is causing – in 2007 Gizmodo estimated that 426,000 phones were trashed daily, totaling 155,490,000 a year! – this pattern of constant upgrades is eternally expensive and annoying.

That being said, two weeks ago I was cleaning my desk and just as I was dropping my iPhone 2G in the garbage I recalled a link someone sent to an iPhone auction site. Though I’m too lazy for online auctions, a quick Google search brought me to www.cashforiPhones.com – GENIOUS! Type in your model and any technical issues, get an instant quote and then they send you a pre-paid mailer. Upon receipt they email you to confirm the final tally and then they pay you via PayPal…my ‘trash’ was worth $85 – caching$! The site also accepts iPods, smartphones and BlackBerrys. No idea where this passé technology is going or how it’s being reused so I can’t say this is a wonderful ‘green’ fix, but who cares – easy money!